Ichigo Kurosaki

Ichigo Kurosaki
Bleach character
Ichigo Kurosaki as illustrated by Tite Kubo
First appearanceBleach #1 "Death & Strawberry" (2001)
Created byTite Kubo
Portrayed bySota Fukushi
Kaito Takamura (child)
Voiced byJapanese
Masakazu Morita[1]
Yuki Matsuoka[2] (child)
English
Johnny Yong Bosch[3]
Mona Marshall[4] (child)
In-universe information
GenderMale
FamilyIsshin Kurosaki (father)
Masaki Kurosaki (mother, deceased)
Yuzu Kurosaki (sister)
Karin Kurosaki (sister)
Kūkaku Shiba (cousin)
Ganju Shiba (cousin)
Kaien Shiba (cousin, deceased)
SpouseOrihime Inoue
ChildrenKazui Kurosaki (son)
RelativesSora Inoue (brother-in-law, deceased)
NationalityJapanese

Ichigo Kurosaki (Japanese: 黒崎 一護, Hepburn: Kurosaki Ichigo) is a fictional character in the Bleach manga series and its adaptations created by author Tite Kubo. He is the main protagonist of the series, who receives Soul Reaper powers after meeting Rukia Kuchiki, a Soul Reaper assigned to patrol around the fictional city of Karakura Town. These powers come at the cost of her own, and as a result, he concedes to work as her stand-in, fighting to protect people from evil spirits called Hollows and sending good spirits, wholes, to a dimension known as the Soul Society. Ichigo appears in other media after the manga series, including the anime television series, four anime films, two original video animations, rock musicals, several video games, light novels and the 2018 live-action film.

Kubo said that Ichigo was created to replace Rukia as the protagonist of the series, because he felt she was unsuited for the role. In the anime series adaptation, Ichigo is voiced by Masakazu Morita in Japanese.[1] In the English dubbing, he is voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch.[3] In the live-action film, he is played by Sota Fukushi.[5]

His character has been well received among both readers and reviewers. Ichigo is often featured in Weekly Shōnen Jump character popularity polls. He was consistently ranked as the most popular character in Bleach.[6] The 2007 Japanese Newtype magazine polls ranked Ichigo as one of the top 100 most-loved anime characters. Reviewers of the series have praised his personality, though some consider him to be a stereotypical anti-hero. Merchandise based on Ichigo's likeness has been released, including toys, clothing and action figures. However, critics disliked his anticlimactic fights in the series' latter half due to his lack of memorable scenes at these points.

  1. ^ a b TV Tokyo, Dentsu, Studio Pierrot (October 5, 2004). "死神になっちゃった日". Bleach. Episode 1. TV Tokyo.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference japchildvoice was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b TV Tokyo, Dentsu, Studio Pierrot (September 8, 2006). "A Soul Reaper is Born!". Bleach. Episode 1. Cartoon Network.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference EngChildvoice was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Sota Fukushi To Lead Live-Action "Bleach" Movie". crunchyroll.com.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Popularity2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).